Schweikert said he was “genuinely impressed” with the architects of the “Department of Government Efficiency” and said it was doing some “great stuff” as DOGE-driven cuts and downsizing were affecting the federal government’s ability to deliver services to seniors. Schweikert voted for raising the Social Security retirement age to 69 and, in 2023, warned it was the “end of your republic” if Congress did not cut major programs benefitting seniors. More than 1.53 million Arizonans relied on Social Security benefits.
Schweikert promoted DOGE even though it resulted in federal funding cuts to Arizona nonprofits and organizations. He downplayed the federal layoffs while Trump threatened the livelihoods of nearly 34,000 federal workers in Arizona.
2025: Schweikert Said DOGE Was Doing Some “Great Stuff,” But Suggested It Was Not Enough In Cuts. According to an interview David Schweikert gave on Wake Up Live, “HOST: After our last so many conversations and we're talking about budget resolution, you hear about the DOGE stuff, which is nice, it's a nice start. But as you keep saying, it's it's a small part of the problem. SCHWEIKERT: Well, look, I love the DOGE is doing some great stuff. […] Go to the official DOGE website right now, you'll see they've identified about $160 billion of savings for next fiscal year. Okay, that's a lot of money. Our baseline borrowing scenario for next year is $2.3 to $2.6 trillion.” [David Schweikert Interview – Wake Up Live, 5/1/25] (VIDEO)
2024: After Meeting With DOGE Architects Musk And Ramaswamy About Their DOGE Plans, Schweikert Said He Was “Genuinely Impressed.” According to Business Insider, “Rep. David Schweikert, a debt-obsessed Republican from Arizona, told BI that his initial skepticism about Musk and Ramaswamy was assuaged after attending the DOGE caucus meeting with the duo, which he said focused more on the mechanics of how cuts might be pursued than specific line items to be targeted. ‘There seemed to be a much deeper understanding of the structural issues and structural barriers than I expected,’ said Schweikert. ‘I left genuinely impressed.’” [Business Insider, 12/5/24]
HEADLINE: “Social Security Stops Reporting Call Wait Times And Other Metrics” [Washington Post, 6/20/25]
HEADLINE: “As Social Security Services Are Cut Back, Millions Of Seniors Face Long Drives” [Axios, 6/8/25]
HEADLINE: “Social Security Website Keeps Crashing, As DOGE Demands Cuts To IT Staff” [Washington Post, 4/7/25]
HEADLINE: “Social Security Faces Thousands More Job Cuts Even With Service In Tailspin” [Washington Post, 4/4/25]
The Center On Budget And Policy Priorities Said The Trump Administration Had Pushed Out 7,000 Social Security Workers. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, “Over the past five months, the Trump Administration has forced the Social Security Administration (SSA) through a radical transformation that threatens to disrupt services for the largely older and severely disabled people who most rely on the agency.[1] The Trump Administration and its so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have created huge gaps in customer service and support by indiscriminately pushing out 7,000 workers to hit an arbitrary staffing reduction target. This is the largest staffing cut in SSA’s history.[2] (See Figure 1.)” [Center On Budget And Policy Priorities, 6/23/25]
The Social Security Administration Website Crashed Four Times In Ten Days In March 2025 Because Servers Were Overloaded. According to the Washington Post, “The Social Security Administration website crashed four times in 10 days this month because the servers were overloaded, blocking millions of retirees and disabled Americans from logging in to their online accounts. In the field, office managers have resorted to answering phones in place of receptionists because so many employees have been pushed out. Amid all this, the agency no longer has a system to monitor customer experience because that office was eliminated as part of the cost-cutting efforts led by Elon Musk. And the phones keep ringing. And ringing.” [Washington Post, 3/25/25]
Field Office Managers At Social Security Offices Had To Answer Phones In Place Of Receptionists Because DOGE Had Pushed Out So Many Federal Employees. According to the Washington Post, “The Social Security Administration website crashed four times in 10 days this month because the servers were overloaded, blocking millions of retirees and disabled Americans from logging in to their online accounts. In the field, office managers have resorted to answering phones in place of receptionists because so many employees have been pushed out. Amid all this, the agency no longer has a system to monitor customer experience because that office was eliminated as part of the cost-cutting efforts led by Elon Musk. And the phones keep ringing. And ringing.” [Washington Post, 3/25/25]
DOGE Eliminated The Social Security Administration’s System To Monitor Customer Experience. According to the Washington Post, “The Social Security Administration website crashed four times in 10 days this month because the servers were overloaded, blocking millions of retirees and disabled Americans from logging in to their online accounts. In the field, office managers have resorted to answering phones in place of receptionists because so many employees have been pushed out. Amid all this, the agency no longer has a system to monitor customer experience because that office was eliminated as part of the cost-cutting efforts led by Elon Musk. And the phones keep ringing. And ringing.” [Washington Post, 3/25/25]
Early February-Late March 2025: AARP Said More Than 2,000 People Per Week Had Called Expressing Concerns About Whether They Would Continue To Get Their Social Security Benefits. According to the Washington Post, “Alarmed lawmakers are straining to answer questions back home from angry constituents. Calls have flooded into congressional offices. AARP announced Monday that more than 2,000 people a week have called the retiree organization since early February — double the usual number — with concerns about whether benefits they paid for during their working careers will continue. Social Security is the primary source of income for about 40 percent of older Americans.” [Washington Post, 3/25/25]
2023: Schweikert Claimed “This Is The End Of Your Republic” If Hard Decisions About Social Security Were Not Made. According to American Journal News via a press release from Rep. David Schweikert, “Rep. Dave Schweikert (R-AZ) suggested during a speech on July 20 that in order to save the country, Congress needs to make difficult cuts to funding for Social Security and Medicare. Schweikert said in a long speech on the House floor that the national debt is out of control due to an aging population and mandatory spending on programs such as Social Security and Medicare, which provide retirement income and health insurance coverage to older and disabled Americans. Without changes to the programs, he said, ‘This is the end of your Republic.’” [American Journal News, 8/3/23 via Press Release – Rep. David Schweikert, 8/3/23]
2017: Schweikert Voted For The FY 2018 Republican Study Committee Budget Resolution Which In Part Called For Raising The Social Security Normal Retirement Age To 69. In October 2017, Schweikert voted for a budget resolution that would in part, according to Congressional Quarterly, “provide for $2.9 trillion in new budget authority in fiscal 2018. It would balance the budget by fiscal 2023 by reducing spending by $10.1 trillion over 10 years. It would cap total discretionary spending at $1.06 trillion for fiscal 2018 and would assume no separate Overseas Contingency Operations funding for fiscal 2018 or subsequent years and would incorporate funding related to war or terror into the base defense account. It would assume repeal of the 2010 health care overhaul and would convert Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program into a single block grant program. It would require that off budget programs, such as Social Security, the U.S. Postal Service, and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, be included in the budget.” The underlying legislation was an FY 2018 House GOP budget resolution. The House rejected the RSC budget by a vote of 139 to 281. [House Vote 555, 10/5/17; Congressional Quarterly, 10/5/17; Congressional Actions, H. Amdt. 455; Congressional Actions, H. Con. Res. 71]
In Arizona, 1,533,323 Arizonans Relied On Social Security Benefits. According to the Social Security Administration, in 2024, 1,533,323 Arizonans received Social Security benefits. [Social Security Administration, Arizona, 2024]
2025: Schweikert Said DOGE Was Doing Some “Great Stuff,” But Suggested It Was Not Enough In Cuts. According to an interview David Schweikert gave on Wake Up Live, “HOST: After our last so many conversations and we're talking about budget resolution, you hear about the DOGE stuff, which is nice, it's a nice start. But as you keep saying, it's it's a small part of the problem. SCHWEIKERT: Well, look, I love the DOGE is doing some great stuff. […] Go to the official DOGE website right now, you'll see they've identified about $160 billion of savings for next fiscal year. Okay, that's a lot of money. Our baseline borrowing scenario for next year is $2.3 to $2.6 trillion.” [David Schweikert Interview – Wake Up Live, 5/1/25] (VIDEO)
When Asked If He Would Explain DOGE Federal Layoffs To His Constituents, Schweikert Said He Would “Be More Interested” In Having Data Scientists Find Evidence Of Employees Who Had Not “Shown Up For Work In Several Months” And “Duplicated Contracts.” According to Schweikert on Arizona’s Morning News, “PROTESTER: destroys the lives of tens and soon to be hundreds of thousands of good, hardworking American civil servants who did nothing wrong other than go to work and do their jobs, and I can't stand it. HOST: That's Andy Porter, one of your constituents, saying that he doesn't like the Elon Musk slash DOGE cuts. Will you ask to put Musk in front of a congressional committee to explain the cuts and how they make sense? SCHWEIKERT: Well, actually, I'd be more interested in actually having some of the data scientists. What we've learned over the last couple of years, and actually, in many ways, you've got to give the Wall Street Journal credit for a project they began over a year ago looking at Medicare Advantage, and they hired data scientists. And what we're finding is, as you grind through and grind through, the data models start to say, hey, do you know you have this? Do you know you have this person who hasn't shown up for work in several months? You have duplicated contracts.” [David Schweikert Interview – Arizona’s Morning News, 2/27/25] (AUDIO)
April 2025: DOGE Cut $6 Million In Federal Funding From Fourteen Arizona Nonprofits And Organizations, Including $380,000 From The AmeriCorp’s Kind People Project, A Program That Helped Title I Schools Across The Valley. According to AZ Family, “Fourteen Arizona nonprofits and organizations are losing an estimated $6 million from federal funding cuts. The Trump Administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is cutting $400 million from AmeriCorps, a program that helps local communities with critical needs. The Be Kind People Project’s $380,000 grant was canceled over the weekend, with 1.5 years left on the contract. Now, 13 AmeriCorps employees who work with ‘Be Kind’ are getting let go. Those employees worked at 13 predominantly Title I schools across the Valley, and they’ve helped thousands of kids with youth development and hundreds of teachers, too. […] See below for a full list of Arizona programs that are losing funding: Northern Arizona University Arizona Teacher Residency Arizona Supreme Court Probation Services Division Arizona State University BE SAGE Program Northern Arizona University Environmental Steward AmeriCorps West Valley Health Equity Northern Arizona University Public Health Executive Office of State of Arizona Placeholder Funds for future allocation Family Scholar House, Inc Vista College Preparatory, Inc. Pima Prevention Partnership Maricopa Superior Court Law Library Parental Support Services AZ Inc Area Agency on Aging, Region One, Inc The Be Kind People Project” [AZ Family, 4/30/25]
March 2025: DOGE Cuts Could Impact Arizona’s 34,000 Federal Workers. According to AZ Central, “Arizona has 34,000 workers who could be impacted by the DOGE cuts, according to the Congressional Research Service. They represent roughly 2% of the civilian federal workers who are employed across every state and territory.” [AZ Central, 3/9/25]